Bristol-Myers, Eisai in up to $3.1 bln deal to develop cancer drug candidate

June 17 (Reuters) – Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (BMY.N) and Eisai Co said on Thursday they had entered into an agreement worth up to $3.10 billion to jointly develop and market an experimental cancer drug.

Bristol-Myers would pay $650 million, including for research and development expenses to Eisai, which will also be eligible for up to $2.45 billion in milestone payments, the companies said.

They would jointly develop and market the drug, MORAb-202, in Asia, Europe, the United States and Canada.

Bristol-Myers in May entered into a $1.56 billion deal with Agenus Inc (AGEN.O) to exclusively develop and market its experimental drug for immuno-oncology treatments, including non-small-cell lung cancer.

The drugmaker has been betting on sales of its Opdivo drug to treat such cancers, in a market currently dominated by Merck & Co’s (MRK.N) rival treatment, Keytruda.

Eisai’s drug, MORAb-202, is being developed for the treatment of solid tumors, including ovarian, lung and breast cancers and is in the early stage of development.

Bristol-Myers will pay Eisai a royalty on sales outside of the collaboration territories, the companies said.Reporting by Amruta Khandekar; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi

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Source: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/bristol-myers-eisai-jointly-develop-market-cancer-drug-2021-06-17/